


Acknowledgment (A She-Ra Music AU)

by catradork22, RedMarFox



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora pines but less obviously, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Catra (She-Ra) Redemption, Catra is still a cat, Centered on Adora and Catra, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Friends to Enemies, Music AU, POV Third Person, Pining Catra (She-Ra), Slow Burn, it's all about the lyrics, she-ra au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:34:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24677023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catradork22/pseuds/catradork22, https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedMarFox/pseuds/RedMarFox
Summary: In which Adora and Catra are more into music than magic and fight for music chart dominance rather than world domination.AKA, this is a music AU with punk-rock Catra and the Horde vs pop music Bright Moon.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Entrapta/Hordak (She-Ra), Mermista/Sea Hawk (She-Ra), Perfuma/Scorpia (She-Ra)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Cue me, trying to write another fic after She-Ra season 5 made me bawl. (There are no spoilers, directly, since this is an AU though. However, you might catch a few similar lines...)  
> Anyway, if there are songs referenced in a chapter, I'll leave the titles in the author's notes! The song in this chapter is called "sugar honey ice & tea" by Bring Me The Horizon.  
> You can also find me on Spotify, cookiems85018, where I have a playlist titled Acknowledgment that has all the songs that appear in the fic up to where I have published it. AKA, right now there's one song. I'll also have a few playlists based on Adora, Catra, etc.

"Don't move a muscle / No, we can't have a struggle," Adora sang into the mic in the recording station. She nodded her head lightly to keep the rhythm of her song in her mind. One of the more difficult parts was coming up; she had to remain focused. "But the situation is in control," so far so good, "So play pretend that it's all good!" Her voice rose as she moved from singing breathily to aggressively.

The sound in her headphones cut out before she could continue the verse and she sighed. Adora knew that meant Shadow Weaver hadn't been impressed with that attempt either. Shifting the headphones off her ears, Adora pushed the door of the stifling soundproof recording room open. Shadow Weaver, ever the quick manager, was already in the hall. Sometimes the woman's rapid movements still surprised her.

"Adora, you know your debut is supposed to be in a few weeks," Shadow Weaver snapped. "How do you expect to release music when you sing like that?"

Shadow Weaver was a stage name, but Adora figured it was better to call her demanding manager whatever she asked.

"I apologize, Shadow Weaver. I know my performance in that section isn't what you're expecting."

"Adora, my dear, I just know you can do better. I saw something in you when I chose you out of all those other children years ago. Our vocal training is the best, so there is no doubt in my mind that you can sing that line stronger."

Adora shifted her eyes away from her manager, feeling guilty for letting her down. "I know, Shadow Weaver. I'll do better next time."

"I know you will, my dear," Shadow Weaver replied, turning away from Adora to walk back to her office. "Take your lunch break and then report for vocal training. Remember, Adora, you will be the showrunner for the Horde one day. You must ensure that you are up to that task."

Moments after Shadow Weaver turned the corner, someone jumped onto Adora from behind, nearly tackling her. "Hey, Adora," Catra giggled into Adora's ear.

"Catra," Adora groaned, but she was glad to see her friend and fellow recruit. "Were you watching the entire time?"

Catra moved off of Adora's back to lean on the wall beside her. "Yeah, saw the whole thing, unfortunately. Shadow Weaver's still overly harsh, but that's her usual attitude. Don't let it get to you."

"That's nice Catra, but she's right. I can sing that line better. I have to, or the song won't be as good, and then I'll be making the Horde look bad--"

"Woah, hold on a moment. Who cares about what people think about our record label? We're the artists-- the stars!" Catra draped her arm dramatically over her forehead. "Where would they be without us? Besides, for what it's worth, I think the way you sing that line is already great," she said, side-eyeing Adora.

Adora sighed. "It's worth something, coming from your stubborn self," she said with a smile.

Catra grinned. "Now that you're out of sad-land, let's go eat. You know the Horde is strict on its time schedule."

Adora let Catra grab her hand and start to drag her down the hall towards the in-building cafeteria. "You know the food here isn't even all that good."

"So? If I don't eat, I'll distract you during vocal training today." She smirked. "And I know Miss People Pleaser wants to pay attention to training." 

"Fine," Adora laughingly replied. "I know I'll never get anything done when you decide to pit yourself against me. What's for lunch?"

"Who cares, it all tastes the same anyway," Catra replied as she broke away from Adora. "Race you to the line!"

"No fair! You already started!" Adora cried as she raced after Catra's retreating back.

The halls, painted various shades of red, twisted and turned on their way to the cafeteria. It was almost a maze, one Adora had gotten lost inside many times when she and Catra had just arrived at Horde Records. When she first arrived, it wasn’t a very welcoming building, but now the familiarity and repetitiveness of the red walls were no longer a bother. The building itself seemed to surround them as they ran further inside.

  
  
  


"Man, today's training sucked!" Catra whined as she left the Horde Records building alongside Adora. "We all know Lonnie isn't even close to debuting with the performance she displayed today."

"Hey, you know that's not nice, Catra."

"So? I'm not her friend."

"We're all training with the Horde. You could at least acknowledge her effort."

"Nope! I don't think I'll ever acknowledge anyone, ever," Catra replied cheekily.

Adora shook her head at her friend. "You're insufferable sometimes, you know."

"You suffer through it though." Catra grinned. "Hey, do you want to come by my apartment for a little while today?" 

"I can't. I'm going to do some more vocal drills and then work on ‘Sugar, Honey, Ice & Tea.’"

"You can't work every hour, Adora. You have to take a break _some_ times."

"Shadow Weaver is depending on me. I have to get this line right... I don't want to keep disappointing her."

"Have it your way," Catra waved dismissively. "Just don't get lost again on your way to your new apartment. I still don't understand why you moved out of your old one."

"It was a dump!" Adora said.

"But it was right next to my building. And you could have roomed with me."

"Your apartment has one bedroom, and barely enough room for one bed. You know that wouldn't have worked." 

"We could have tried." Catra pouted. "Alright, well, call me when you get there, okay? You are seriously bad with directions, and it's a bit far." 

"I'll be fine! I got there in record time yesterday."

"That's only because you ran!" Catra laughed.

"See you tomorrow, silly cat," Adora smiled, ruffling Catra's long and unruly hair.

Catra swatted at Adora's hand before replying, "uh, yeah. Call me."

Adora messed with Catra for a few more moments before turning and walking away. Catra stood watching Adora's back grow further and further away before turning to leave herself. A small smile played across both their faces as they left.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Adora meets two very cool aspiring musicians.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song in this chapter is “Animal” by Neon Trees. Again, you can find it on Spotify under my “Acknowledgement (A She-Ra AU)” playlist— same title as the fic!  
> This chapter was really fun to write, since I got to do the beginning dynamics of the Best Friends Squad! I love them; they deserve the world.  
> Please leave any thoughts in the comments! Muah!

Adora walked along the city streets, glancing up at the towering buildings that surrounded her. She knew the city was big for the music industry, but seeing Horde Records’ logo displayed on billboards was still a bit shocking to her. Adora smiled to herself; one day, with the Horde’s help, it would be her and Catra’s faces on those billboards, staring down at aspiring musicians in the future. This was her dream, after all. She wouldn’t have moved away from home and dropped out of high school if she didn’t love it.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the deep reds and black of the Horde advertisement fade into a softer color palette of blues and purples. Adora didn’t have to turn to know what label those colors signified, but she looked anyway. One of the primary artists for the Bright Moon Line label smiled at her, but Adora couldn’t smile back at her enemy. She knew Horde Records and Bright Moon Line had been rivals in the industry years before she even became a Horde recruit, but she wasn’t sure why. Nonetheless, Horde Records had been consistently beating Bright Moon Line for years, and Adora wanted to continue that.

Bright Moon Line also had its headquarters in this city, although Adora wasn’t sure where. Horde Records was proud to have a stylized red and black edifice, but she’d certainly never seen a blue and purple building to represent Bright Moon. Adora chalked it up to lack of pride in their brand, and more importantly, lack of funds from low sales. At least, sales had been low, until that blue-haired siren appeared on the scene. Sometimes, when she and Catra would hang around outside of Shadow Weaver’s office, they overheard mentions of Bright Moon Line’s recent success surrounding the artist.

Adora always shrugged these things off. _Bright Moon may be rising at the moment_ , she thought, _but Catra and I’s twin debuts are sure to steal the musical spotlight back for the Horde. In order to do that, I really need to use this time to practice, and to practice, I need to find my stupid apartment complex._ After she moved nearly a week ago, Adora spent a good amount of time each evening navigating. She wouldn’t tell Catra this, but she did wish her sassy friend was here to deal with the directions. Adora had been walking for twenty minutes, and by this point she was itching to practice. Luckily, her wandering had led her to a building that looked like a karaoke joint. Horde Records discouraged singing unreleased songs outside of their premises, but Adora liked the privacy karaoke rooms granted her.

 _It will take awhile to find the complex. I might as well stop in here to practice for a bit_. Adora thought as she turned and walked into the building. The karaoke place seemed to be only one floor, but the towering establishment was clearly much larger. In the back of her mind, Adora wondered what businesses might be on the other floors. The elevator in the lobby was clearly labeled “Not for Public Use,” so she wouldn’t be able to explore the question any further. 

“One karaoke room please,” Adora told the sales clerk working the desk. She paid the fare that a private room would cost for an hour’s use and walked down the hall leading to room #5. Strangely, she could hear a song she didn’t recognize playing from one of the rooms nearby-- she supposed the occupants hadn’t closed the door fully. The tune was catchy, electronic, and not at all like the Horde’s punk-rock style. Adora found herself nodding along outside of the room, unable to tear herself away from the catchy beat. Oddly, no one was singing along in the room. It sounded as if the people inside were playing the song itself rather than a recording, but Adora couldn’t see well enough through the crack in the door to tell if that were true. Either way, the beat was being played on repeat, and it was inspiring Adora’s inner lyricist.

“Here we go again,” she sang softly, slightly joking to herself. As she sang that, more lyrics started popping into her head, and figuring the occupants wouldn’t hear her over the music, she continued: “I kinda wanna be more than friends / So take it easy on me / I’m afraid you’re never satisfied.”

She took a breath, starting a new verse. “Here we go again / We're sick like animals / We play pretend / You're just a cannibal / And I'm afraid I won't get out alive”

Adora’s voice unconsciously began to grow louder as she worked towards the chorus she imagined until she was singing at full volume. “No I won’t sleep tonight / Oh oh, I want some more / Oh oh, what are you waitin’ for?”

The guitar stopped and immediately after, the door swung open quickly, almost hitting Adora straight in the face. A petite girl stood in the doorway, one hand on the doorknob and one on her lilac electric guitar. “And… who exactly are you?” 

Adora stared wide-eyed at the pink-haired girl, feeling very called-out. “Oh, I um… I’m--”

“Are you a lyricist?” The girl interrupted.

“Glimmer, you can’t just ask her questions without introducing yourself,” a male voice called from inside the room.

The girl, who Adora assumed must be Glimmer, sighed and pushed the door open wider. “Come on in, I guess,” she said.

Adora was right-- the song was being played live. In addition to Glimmer’s electric guitar, she noticed an electric drum set, complete with one drummer. Both instruments were hooked up to the karaoke speakers.

“I’m Bow,” said the drummer, drawing Adora’s attention. “And that’s Glimmer,” he said, motioning to the petite guitarist, who had taken a seat. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Adora, and yeah, I am a lyricist. I’m sorry for listening in on your song, but it was just so catchy, and then I was feeling really inspired, so I started singing along and I know I shouldn’t have. Sorry.”

Adora expected to see angry or at least irritated looks on the musicians’ faces, but instead, they both looked oddly… eager.

Bow looked at Glimmer. “What do you think?”

“Well, we have been needing a lyricist… and I’m still not the best singer. Maybe we could try it out?”

“And see what happens? Alright.” Bow turned back to Adora. “Do you want to help write this song with us? Seeing as you already did a third of it.”

“Yeah, actually. I’d like that,” Adora smiled. “For some reason, that electric beat really spoke to me.”

Bow grinned. “You can thank me for that part. Why don’t you pick up one of the karaoke mics and set it up so we can get started?”

Adora picked up one of the mics. It wasn’t nearly the same caliber as her recording mic at the Horde studio, but hey, this was just a karaoke place. She plugged it into one of the speakers. “Ready when you are.”

Glimmer picked up one of the guitar picks she had laid out and Bow grabbed his drumsticks. He hit play on the pre-recorded electronic soundtrack, and as Bow and Glimmer started their parts, Adora found herself opening up to the concept of playing in a group.

As their practicing and writing wore on, none of them heard the ringtone coming from Adora’s bag in the corner of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The song in this chapter is "Courage" by P!nk.

As Adora walked into the Horde Records building the next day, she was greeted with a half-relieved and half-pissed off Catra.

“ADORAAAAA!” Catra yelled, grabbing Adora by her forearms. “Why didn’t you pick up yesterday? I called you, but you never answered! I thought you got yourself in trouble!”

Adora stared at Catra, surprised. After a few seconds, Catra looked away and let go of her arms. The movement shook Adora out of her head.

“You called?” She asked in confusion, turning slightly to dig her phone out of her bag. Clicking it on, she saw a dozen missed calls. “Oh, Catra, I’m so sorry, I totally forgot to call you because I got home so late yesterday. Actually, I have a question for you.”

Catra flicked her eyes back to Adora’s, raising an eyebrow. “Shoot.”

“Have you ever considered changing your music style? Or, maybe even music genres?”

Catra laughed incredulously. “What? Why on Etheria would you ask that? Are you brain damaged or something?”

“No! Of course not. It’s just that yesterday I--”

“Adora.” Shadow Weaver stepped up to the pair suddenly. Where had she even come from? “Just the recruit I wanted to see. Come with me; we have much to discuss.”

Adora looked at Catra, who just shrugged. Taking that as a dismissal, Adora turned to follow her manager down the hall.

“Shadow Weaver, I actually wanted to speak with you about something.” Adora started.

“I’m sure it can wait. I have an important update for you, Adora.” Shadow Weaver didn’t turn to look at her until they had reached their destination, Shadow Weaver’s office. “Sit down.”

Adora sat in the chair across the desk from Shadow Weaver. Thinking back over the past few days, she fretted about things she or Catra might have possibly done wrong.

Shadow Weaver seemed to be pulling up something on her laptop. Suddenly, she spun it so that the screen faced Adora. On it, Adora saw the latest advertisement for Scorpia’s upcoming concert. She looked up at her manager in confusion.

“You will be the opening act for Scorpia’s concert next month.” Shadow Weaver said, sensing Adora’s confusion.

Adora gasped. Scorpia was huge in the music industry and one of Horde Records’ top earners. “I would be honored, Shadow Weaver. Catra must be the second act then, before Scorpia performs.”

Shadow Weaver shook her head. “My dear, that girl is below you. She will not be performing at this concert.”

Adora’s features settled back into confusion. “Catra’s amazing. She’s our best writer, and her voice is incredible. She really deserves this spot. Plus, we agreed to debut together.”

Her manager appeared to be growing impatient. “You will debut next month at this concert. Catra will not.” As Adora opened her mouth to argue, Shadow Weaver raised her hand, effectively silencing her. “That is final. You may go to your morning practice now.”

As Adora stood up to go, she twisted to look back at her manager. “Um, I still have a question for you. I think I’d like to change my musical style, maybe even genres.”

Shadow Weaver froze at her desk. “Adora. Horde Records is strictly a rock, punk, and metal label. Your music is already tenuously straddling that line.”

“What about a collaboration with an independent artist? That wouldn’t be changing my genre.”

“Absolutely not. The Horde has plenty of artists to choose from.”

“But it would just be one song! I--”

“Enough! What is with you today?” Shadow Weaver shook her head and tutted. “You are disappointing me, Adora. Go to your scheduled practice. I will hear no other talk about any of this.”

Opening the door quietly, Adora stepped out into the hall before frowning. The Horde’s rules on genres had always seemed silly to her, and barring her from outside collaborations was just unfair, but they had taken her on and trained her into the musician she was now. The label was even allowing her, a novice, to open for a massive concert. She should be grateful. Her thoughts spun as she headed off to her practice.

  
  
  


Adora hadn’t been focused the rest of the day. The vocal instructor even reprimanded her at one point, something that almost never happened to her. To Catra, yes, but not to Adora. Speaking of Catra, she’d been giving Adora strange glances the entire day. As they left the complex, Catra turned to her friend.

“Alright, ever since that little morning chat with Shadow Weaver, you’ve been acting weird. Hell, actually even before then. What’s going on with you, Adora?”

Adora looked at her friend sadly. “Shadow Weaver wants me to open for Scorpia’s concert next month.”

“What? That’s incredible! Why aren’t you excited? We’re finally getting our start!”

“That’s just it, Catra. She… she said you can’t debut with me.”

Catra scoffed. “But I’m sure you stuck up for me? She’ll come around if her star pupil demands it.”

Adora stayed silent, giving Catra a hopeless look.

“Adora… you stuck up for me, right? We’re still going to do our music careers together… right?”

Adora sighed. She reached her hand towards Catra who shuffled just out of reach. “I’m sure we can still do other things together,” she said, trying to soothe her friend.

“Let me think about it,” Catra muttered. “See you tomorrow.”

Adora watched as Catra walked away in the direction of her apartment. She hoped Catra would get over the issue, but she also knew the catgirl held grudges for a while. Sighing for what felt like the tenth time that day, she pulled out her phone. Her eyes fell on a text from Bow, asking her if she wanted to work on their song again that night. Adora figured that with the day she just had, she needed a mood boost. Shooting off a quick text, she spun around and headed off towards the karaoke place. 

  
  
  


The karaoke desk worker told Adora that Bow and Glimmer picked the same room every time they came down, and pointed her to the room they were in yesterday. This time, the door was solidly shut. Adora took a breath and knocked.

A friendly face opened the door a few seconds later. “Adora!” Bow said. “I’m so happy you came back! I mean,” he said, shooting a glance at Glimmer behind him, “WE are so happy.”

Glimmer scoffed. “I’m smiling, aren’t I? She knows I’m happy to see her too. Bow, you’re blocking the entrance.” She swatted at his back lightly and Bow stepped back. 

Adora grinned at their interactions. She almost wished, well, that she and Catra could be a little more like that. Soft… but that had never been a word to describe her catty friend, unless she was discussing her fur.

As Bow and Glimmer settled back into their seats, Adora closed the door behind herself, dropping her bag onto the floor.

“Take a seat, silly,” Glimmer said. “I think you’ll be pretty happy to hear what we have to say.”

Bow glanced at Glimmer before affirming her statement. “I think we should start with the song we’ve been writing. How would you feel about releasing it to the public?”

Adora expected this. She hated to let her new friends down, but Shadow Weaver had made the situation very clear that morning. “Guys, I would really love to, and I brought it up to my manager this morning, but my label doesn’t allow that kind of cooperation with artists who aren’t contracted to us. Plus, I have to stick to my genre, and although it really was fun to write outside of those boundaries, I can’t release anything that doesn’t conform to their standards.”

Glimmer’s eyes widen slightly at Adora’s words. “I only know of one record label that strict. Keeping you corralled to one genre with no permittance of deviation? Please,  _ please _ , tell me you aren’t with the Horde.”

Seeing as Adora refused to make eye contact, Glimmer’s tone grew angrier. “Are you serious? The HORDE? Bow, we almost let this spy steal music for the Horde again! To think, we almost let you join--” Her sentence halted, and Glimmer seemed reluctant to continue.

Hearing her label defamed like that, Adora couldn’t stay silent. “Listen, I don’t know what you’re talking about with your ‘spies’ or whatever, but I was never here to  _ steal _ . The Horde and its members write our own music and it’s damn good too. I just,” Adora sighed. “I don’t know what I wanted out of this. But I enjoyed writing and singing with you two yesterday.”

After Adora had said her piece, silence hung over the trio. Neither Adora nor Glimmer looked up from the now-fascinating floor. Flicking his eyes back and forth between the two, Bow cleared his throat. “Hey, Adora, what’s it like to be a trainee in the Horde?”

Adora sighed, but figured she should take an olive branch when it was offered. “Well, for starters, they call us recruits. Kind of military-style, both in the language and in the instruction. Our days are scheduled down to the minute; sometimes it’s hard to write music in such a confined and specific time. But it’s all in the name of productivity. The instructors can be harsh, but it makes us good. We get things done, and if we think we can’t, they push us until we do. There isn’t much else to say-- it’s effective.”

“... So, you really live like that for five days of the week?” Glimmer asked quietly. She hadn’t stopped staring at her feet, but her voice had lost its edge.

“Funny. Of course not! We train every day. Seven days a week,” Adora grinned. Her grin fell when Glimmer raised her head, concern etched into her face.

“That sounds really rough. When do you get a break?” Bow asked.

“This is my dream. I don’t take breaks. I’m going to make it come true, and I’m so close.”

“Close to what? Exhaustion?” Bow said. “I get it, the desire to produce and release your own music, but you’re still human, Adora. You need rest, and care, and experiences outside of a studio.”

Biting her lip, Adora continued. “Well, this is my dream, and the Horde is going to get me there.”

“What if you had another option?” Glimmer asked. “One that let you rest, and have free time, your own schedule but supported you when you needed it, and let you write whatever genre you felt like writing? Would you at least consider it?”

Adora paused. She had picked the Horde because of its reputation in the punk world, but now that she was seriously thinking about changing her entire dynamic, maybe she should consider switching. “Maybe,” Adora replied after thinking for a bit. “I don’t know. It feels sort of traitorous to switch now, after all the time I spent with Horde Records.”

Glimmer cringed at the name. “It’s ultimately your music, you know,” she said, rising from her chair. “Think about what you want.”

“In the meantime, why don’t you come take a look at our label?” Bow popped up from his seat behind the electric drum set-up. “It isn’t far from here,” he said, sharing a co-conspiratorial grin with Glimmer. They walked to the door, motioning for Adora to follow. Considering she technically had all night, she grabbed her bag from where it lay and trailed after them.

Bow and Glimmer walked back to the lobby before making a sharp right away from the karaoke’s entrance. “Uh, shouldn’t we be heading out?” Adora asked, motioning with her thumb.

Bow laughed. “Nope! This way.” 

The trio stopped in front of the elevator still labeled “Not For Public Use.” Adora was growing concerned. What if they were going to intrude on some business that was closed for the night? Did she really want to trust these people she met only yesterday, even if they had so far been amazing?

It was too late anyway. Glimmer had already pushed a button and the elevator doors were opening. She saw Adora reluctantly standing outside the doors and motioned for Bow to hold the “Open Door” button. “Adora, I promise everything will be fine. Now come on!” She reached out her hand which Adora took after a moment, pulling her in. She turned to Bow. “What do you think? Main studio floor?”   
“Sounds good to me. Let’s go!” 

They only went up one floor, leading Adora to wonder why exactly they hadn’t just taken a flight of stairs. As the elevator doors opened to reveal the main studio, all other thoughts left Adora’s mind. Everything was brightly colored, and there was a plethora of art on the walls. A couple of guitar picks were scattered across the floor, one of which Adora saw Glimmer pick up out of the corner of her eye. It was so different from the Horde-- Adora even saw a room full of beanbags, although she couldn’t imagine its purpose.

Her ears vaguely registered Bow quietly reprimanding Glimmer: 

“You already have so many guitar picks! Put that back.” 

“Bo-ooow! This one’s actually mine, I know I dropped it the other day.” 

“You always say that Glimmer, you know that?”

Examining the art on the walls, it mostly appeared to be of the same style, with a few errant stick figures here and there. Each was signed in the corner with a calligraphic  _ P _ and possibly a flower? Adora was never great with swirling letters; she much preferred straight lines. All the drawings seemed to be of people, and the same people appeared over and over again. One character had deep blue hair, and the man who often appeared next to her had a very stylized mustache. Adora was pretty sure she spotted Bow and Glimmer quite a few times, along with two older women.

“These are our memories,” Bow said suddenly from behind her and Adora had to clap a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming.

“Bow! Don’t sneak up on me like that,” she gasped.

“Oops, sorry. I saw you looking at Perfuma’s drawings, and they’re one of the best parts about the main lobby.”

“The other being the bean bag meeting room!” Glimmer called from a distance. Adora turned to see her lounging on the piles of bean bags.

“Do you guys really use that room for meetings?” Adora asked.

“Of course! It makes boring meetings waaay more fun.” Glimmer called back.

Bow shook his head, but his fond smile gave away his attempt at chastisement. “Anyway, back to Perfuma. She’s our resident album cover designer, and she does an amazing job. A while back, she drew a cartoon of some of us doing tossing papers around the office, which we actually did, and it’s become a sort of tradition. Whenever she sees us do something silly or memorable, she sketches it and posts it here.”

“So, like a photo album, or a scrapbook?”

“Exactly. And I love coming here to just… reminisce.”

Adora caught Bow’s eyes lingering on the sketches that included Glimmer at the forefront.  _ They must be great friends _ .

“What’s with the guitar picks on the floor then? Glimmer seems to be taking an interest in them.”

“Glimmer, no!” Bow cried in frustration.

Glimmer was crouched on the floor, examining another pick. “Bow! I think I lost this one a week ago. And just look how pretty it is!”

Bow pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “Glimmer. You have SO MANY. And to answer your question Adora, they are half for decoration and half for picking up if you need a spare, which Glimmer  _ never needs _ because her collection is  _ massive _ .”

Glimmer pouted before dropping the pick in her hand and standing up. “Alright, alright. I’ll leave it as a gift for someone else.”

Suddenly, a loud clang echoed from further into the building, followed by a groan.

“Mermista must still be here!” Glimmer said. “Come on Adora, you just have to meet her. She’s great.”

Bow’s mood improved at the same moment. “If she’s here this late, I bet it’s Sea Hawk that’s keeping her! I love that guy.”

Glimmer dashed down the hall, and Bow moved to follow. “Adora, seriously, you  _ have  _ to meet these two.”

As they approached a closed door, Adora began to hear the Spongebob theme song, except there were no backup vocals. Glimmer opened the door to reveal the blue-haired and mustached characters Adora had seen depicted in Perfuma’s sketches. The man was currently singing the sea shanty from Spongebob, and he sounded ridiculously accurate. Bow leaned over to Adora. “He’s the actual singer for the Spongebob theme, and he has never gotten over it. I’m sure Mermista wishes he would.”

The names finally clicked for Adora. Mermista and Sea Hawk were big names in the industry, and they were both licensed under the same record label: Bright Moon Line, the Horde’s rival. Adora grappled with that realization for a moment before shoving it into the back of her mind. These were two big artists, so she wanted to try and learn something from them. As she opened her mouth, Glimmer rushed past her and enveloped Mermista in a large hug. Mermista, surprisingly, didn’t seem too miffed by the interaction.  _ That’s odd. Glimmer isn’t a big-name artist, so why would these two be friends? _ She looked over at Bow, who was easily striking up a conversation with Sea Hawk.  _ They’re both massive stars. Why are they giving those two any attention? The Horde never lets rookies interact with their stars. _

A hand firmly grasped her forearm and tugged her forward. She was now standing directly beside Bow, which meant she was in front of Sea Hawk. Adora gulped; she wasn’t qualified to talk to him! What was Bow thinking?

“Ah, the prospective recruit!” Sea Hawk said. “My good friend Bow here was just explaining your situation to me. So, you might be joining our ragtag team in our quest for glory?” When Adora didn’t reply, he continued on. “The real question is, are you ready for ADVENTURE?”

“Ugh, Sea Hawk, isn’t it a bit late for that talk?” Mermista said as she and Glimmer moved closer to the others. “You must be Adora, then?” She asked, looking straight into Adora’s eyes. “You know we’re just normal people right? Well, at least, I’m a normal person,” Mermista said, glancing at Sea Hawk. “He’s a bit crazy.”

Adora straightened her back. “It’s an honor to meet both of you. You’re both incredibly successful and great writers.”

Mermista raised one of her polished eyebrows. “Uh huh. Did you even hear the part where I said I’m a normal person?”

Glimmer chimed in, throwing her arms around the superstar. “Yup, she is! She always does game nights with us, even when she pretends she doesn’t really want to.”

“Do not be alarmed at our greatness!” Sea Hawk replied, which earned him an elbow from Mermista. “We’ve been playing board games with these two since they were preteens.”

_ Alright, if they’re going to keep talking with us, I suppose I should reply, _ Adora thought. Plus, it seemed as if the four of them had been friends for a while. “So, uh, what are you two doing here so late?”

“Mermista is working on her latest masterpiece, and I’m her greatest inspiration,” Sea Hawk winked.

Mermista rolled her eyes, but didn’t rebuff the comment.  _ They make for odd partners, but it seems like it works for them _ .

“Do you want to hear what I’ve got?” Mermista asked, already moving towards a shimmering blue case on the floor.

“Of course!” Bow said excitedly. “I love listening to you sing.”

Mermista opened the case, revealing a similarly-colored deep blue acoustic guitar. “Sea Hawk knocked the case over earlier. He’s  _ still _ denying that he was trying to break my guitar.”

“Mermista, dearest, I haven’t broken a guitar in months! I am trying my best.”

“He’s a serial guitar-wrecker,” Glimmer whispered to Adora. “If you aren’t careful, he’ll drop it, or accidentally drop something on it. Once, he dropped his guitar on another guitar and broke  _ both _ of them.”

“I can hear you, you know,” Sea Hawk said, frowning at Glimmer. “It’s a curse of mine.”

“A bad habit is what it is,” Mermista muttered. “Somehow, my guitar is still in tune, so prepare yourselves.” She took a deep breath before settling her hands gently onto the strings. Her fingers began to pluck a delicate, repetitive melody. “Rain, it pours, rain it pours / It’s pouring on me / The rain, it falls, rain, it falls / Sowing the seeds of love and hope, love and hope / We don’t have to stay, stuck in the way.” She paused before softly continuing. “Have I the courage to change? / Have I the courage to change? / Have I the courage to change today? / Oh.” Her hands lowered from the guitar strings. “That’s what I’ve got so far. I was also thinking of adding this,” she said, plucking three notes and then a triplet of notes quicker. “That would probably be the opening of the song; it sounds very introspective to me.”

“That was great,” Glimmer said, her eyes shimmering.

“Thanks,” Mermista replied. “I’ve been wanting to write an inspirational piece recently, so it’s partially speaking towards if I have that power, the ability to change my pace and direction.”

“What answer did you find?” Adora blurted. 

Mermista turned to look at her. “What?”

“I mean, were you able to change? I’m struggling with that myself, really. What genre I want to plant myself in.”

“I don’t believe in genres. I just believe in music and speaking your heart.”

Adora’s eyes widened slightly, her lips parted.

“Okay, chill. I’m not Socrates or anything,” Mermista said, looking at Adora’s awed face. “I just think you should widen your perspective a little.” She turned back to Glimmer, Bow, and Sea Hawk. “Any suggestions for that part?”

“What if you crescendo on that last line, before you sing ‘Have I the courage to change’? And then you could put more power behind those lines?” Adora suggested.

Mermista stared at her thoughtfully. “Hmm,” she hummed. “Sowing the seeds of love and hope, love and hope / We don’t have to stay, stuck in the way.” This time, she raised her voice and began nodding along. “Have I the courage to change? / Have I the courage to change? / Have I the courage to change today? / Oh.” She looked back at Adora. “Way better. You have a talent for writing, huh?”

“It just felt right to me. I wouldn’t call it talent, anyway.”

“Either way, I think you’d do well here. I’m going to go back to brainstorming now.”

“And I’ll be your trusty companion,” Sea Hawk replied, slinging his arm over her shoulders.

“We’ll leave you to it!” Glimmer said, herding Bow and Adora from the room.

“They were… really inviting,” Adora said as the trio walked back towards the main lobby.

“Yup! Everyone here is like that.” Bow grinned. “That’s why I always dreamed of producing music here. Well, that and the fact that I’ve been part of the family here for years.”

“Courtesy of me,” Glimmer reminded him. “Bow and I have been friends for years, and I have family members who work here,” she explained to Adora.

“Neither of you are really new to the music scene then?”

“Nah,” Bow said. “But we’ve both talked about releasing music ourselves for years. That’s the part we don’t have much experience in.”

“Yet! Not much experience yet,” Glimmer said. “We’re going to start, soon.”

“Actually, I wanted to ask you two about that,” Adora said. “Sea Hawk and Mermista were saying some odd things, like that I’d ‘do well here?’”

Bow smiled and took Adora’s hand. “That’s something we wanted to talk with you about. You’re an amazing lyricist and singer, and we need you. Would you join Glimmer and I at Bright Moon and write music with us?”

“We asked my aunt and manager Castaspella yesterday before we knew you were with the Horde, but I’m sure she’d still say yes,” Glimmer added.

Adora looked at both of them in shock. “You want to work with me, even though you know I’m with the Horde? Our labels have been rivals for as long as I’ve been alive.”

“Well, the expectation was that you’d join our label: Bright Moon Line,” Glimmer admitted. “I think you’d like it here much better anyways; the Horde sounded pretty strict.”

Adora surveyed the room. It was much more inviting than the Horde had been at first, and the four musicians she had met the past two days seemed like good people, contrary to what the Horde had told them about their rival. “I’ll have to think about it,” she replied. “I’ll let you know as soon as I decide, alright?”

Bow smiled. “Take your time,” he said, enveloping her in a hug. 

_ He’s a good hugger, _ Adora thought.  _ I could get used to this. _

“Alright, but soon okay? We are getting ready to debut!” Glimmer said before joining the hug.

_ So am I. With who is the question. _

Adora left the thought unsaid. “Well, it’s getting late, and I should really be getting back to my apartment.”

“We’ll walk you out,” Bow replied, breaking off the hug.

The three stepped apart and headed towards the elevator.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this chapter so much!! Brainstorming all these cute ideas for Bright Moon Line was really fun. I based Sea Hawk's chaotic instrument-breaking off of a friend of mine who has in fact broken at least five instruments. They were not all his. Also, what Mermista says about genres is an actual quote from P!nk; since I love references I thought it would be fun to fit it in.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The song in this chapter is a repeat, “Animal” by Neon Trees, as Adora, Bow, and Glimmer have only written one song so far!

The next few days, Adora felt stuck. She couldn’t stop thinking about Bright Moon and Glimmer and Bow’s offer. What had started as a simple diversion had become her most obsessive thought. It was spilling into her day-to-day; her instructors were growing increasingly frustrated with her. After being reprimanded for the third day in a row, Adora started catching more and more glances from Catra and the other cadets. She knew she should be setting the example of the perfect recruit, but she couldn’t find it in her.

Eventually, Adora was called into Shadow Weaver’s office. She figured she was overdue for a scolding on her recent behavior.

“Adora,” Shadow Weaver crooned. “Your instructors told me that you have not been performing optimally the past few days.”

Adora lowered her head deferentially. “I apologize, Shadow Weaver. I’ll do better.”

“There are consequences that come with this behavior, Adora. You’re supposed to be our top recruit, destined to take over the music industry in the Horde’s name. There is no room for error here; you know that.”

Shadow Weaver stood up and sighed. She picked up a pile of papers and walked around her desk so that she was face-to-face with Adora. “Do you know what these are?”

Adora looked at the page on top of the small stack. On it was printed “Horde Recruit Termination Form.” She took a step back in shock. “You’re going to terminate me?” 

“That would not be a fitting punishment. You’re a great talent, Adora. Look closer.”

Below the bolder words, Adora could see Catra’s name written in many spots on the form. “No, you can’t,” she breathed.

“Oh, but I can.” Shadow Weaver returned easily. “Adora. You’re being distracted. I can see it quite easily, and I know who’s to blame. It’s Catra. You spend so much of your time with that worthless recruit instead of focusing on your music and your career here, in the Horde. You have great potential here Adora, and it would be a tragedy to give that up for someone so insignificant. If you continue like this, I will have no choice but to sign these papers. It’s for your own good. Then, you’ll be able to think clearly and make the right decisions.”

Adora shook her head and met Shadow Weaver’s eyes. “You can’t fire Catra.” She straightened her back in resolution. “You won’t.” With that, she turned and left the office.

Catra caught up with her down the hall. “What happened? I tried to get out of training to hear, but the instructor wasn’t having it today.”

Adora gave Catra a resolute smile. _No need to worry her. I’ll deal with it._ “Oh, you know, Shadow Weaver’s usual spiel. But I’ve got an idea that won’t let her be so overbearing anymore.”

Catra’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, are we going to get her fired? _Please_ let me help with that.”

“Nope, but it does involve paperwork.”

Catra groaned. “Let me know if you have any actual fun stuff in mind.”

“I’m going to head off to the main office and pick up those papers before I leave today.”

“Want some company?”

“That’s alright,” Adora replied, gently scratching behind Catra’s ears. “Go home and rest.”

“Okay... See you tomorrow, and get over whatever’s been making you all weird!” Catra called as she walked off towards the exit.

Adora grinned at her friend’s silliness, heading off to get the paperwork she was looking for.

  
  
  


The next morning, Adora walked into Shadow Weaver’s office and slammed a stack on papers onto her desk. “You wanted me to make the right decision, so I am. I quit.”

“Adora, why would you say such an absurd thing? The Horde has been your home for years, the only one you have now.”

Adora cringed and shook her head. “No. That’s not true, not anymore. I found people who accept me, and they don’t _demand_ anything of me. I want to make my own choices; you can’t dictate my life for me anymore.” She threw the key card that let her into the building at her manager.

Shadow Weaver rose and placed a hand on Adora’s shoulder. “You’re my prize pupil. I’ve raised you into who you are. We can overlook this infraction, just this once.”

“No!” Adora replied, shaking her off. “You just want to manipulate me. Anyway, you can’t change this. Horde rules say once a resignation is handed over, it’s final. I’m… leaving for good.” Adora slammed the door behind her as she left, effectively cutting off any other manipulative words Shadow Weaver could say. 

As she walked down the hall, she felt eyes burning into her back. Now a safe distance from her ex-manager’s office, she looked back shakily. Just as she feared, Catra was stalking her at a distance, fists clenching and unclenching.

“Catra?” She called, her voice trembling. 

“Adora?” Catra returned, half-questioning and half-furious. “Tell me that was just a ploy to make Shadow Weaver freak out,” she said as she caught up.

Adora flicked her eyes to the wall. “Horde Records isn’t the place for me. And it doesn’t have to be for you, either. I grabbed a second set of resignation papers, for you.” She offered a blank stack of papers to Catra.

Catra hesitated for a second, giving Adora a shred of hope for her friend. Instead, Catra growled before slapping the papers from Adora’s outstretched hand. “What the hell are you talking about?! This is our _home_ Adora. We both accepted that when we were recruited all those years ago.”

Adora pressed her now-empty hand to her forehead. “I know, Catra, but Bright Moon offered me a place there. They’re so friendly and they accept me there. Please, Catra, come with me.”

“Bright Moon Line? Are you serious?!”

“Catra, please.” Tears pricked at Adora’s eyes. She reached out to her friend again, hand open.

Catra stared at her, unblinking. Adora held her gaze. Keeping her eyes on Adora, Catra began to walk backwards, away from her. Eventually, she turned her back and walked away, her flicking tail the only thing revealing her emotion.

Adora had to lean on the wall so she wouldn’t completely collapse onto the floor. Watching her closest friend of years just walk away, it was almost enough to make Adora face Shadow Weaver again, beg for forgiveness. Sniffing a bit, Adora took a deep breath and turned back towards the building's exit.

As she walked out the double doors, she took extra care to not fall down the few stairs outside. She reached the sidewalk, officially off of Horde Records property, and only then did she let herself go, falling to her knees. Her eyes scaled the grand black edifice as tears trickled down her face. Idly, she wondered if anyone inside could see her out here and slightly wished she had accepted Bow and Glimmer’s offer to wait outside for her. Looking back at the doors, reality came crashing down on her. She had thrown her key card, meaning she was officially unable to ever enter the record label again. Adora was locked out, and she felt like Catra was locked in. 

_I told Shadow Weaver I made the right decision, but did I really?_ Adora wondered. _If I stayed, Shadow Weaver would have continued to manipulate me, hurt Catra, just to make us both obey. But now Catra’s alone in there, without me to protect her._ Adora felt more and more anxious as her thoughts raced, worrying for Catra. _No. I can’t think like that. I offered Catra a way out, and she refused. It was her decision to stay in a place where she’ll get hurt. Catra chose this, chose to put herself through torture, just for a career._ That broke Adora’s heart. Her breath hitched, but she stood on shaky legs, wiping her cheeks with the heel of her hand. She couldn’t go back, even if she wanted to.

Adora rolled her head around, cracking her neck. She took a few steadying breaths and then headed off towards the Bright Moon Line headquarters.

  
  
  


As she approached, Adora saw Glimmer leaning on the grey bricks of the studio building, Bow standing next to her. She saw Bow make a motion towards her and Glimmer turned to see her approach.

Pushing off of the wall, Glimmer walked to meet Adora. “How did it go?” Glimmer surveyed Adora’s face, noting the slight redness of her cheeks.

Bow caught up to Glimmer and placed his hand on Adora’s shoulder, causing her to jump. “We’re here for you, okay? Just let us know what you need,” he said, withdrawing his hand.

“Thanks guys, but I’m really fine,” Adora shrugged. “What’s the plan for today?”

“Well, we normally don’t have one, but today is special. It’s your first day at Bright Moon! There’s so many people for you to meet, keys to print for you, and maybe even…” Glimmer trailed off, looking expectantly at Bow.

“We’re planning a welcome party for you!” Bow exclaimed. “Bright Moon Line parties are the _best_ , you’ll love it.”

“You throw parties just for a new member?” Adora asked.

“Don’t you have welcome parties at the Horde?” When Adora shook her head in the negative, Bow gasped. “That’s a tragedy! Glimmer, we have to get this girl some cake, stat!”

Glimmer laughed. “Bow! The cake won’t be here for another couple of hours. Besides she has a few people to meet before the party.”

“Right. Alright Adora, come on in!”

The three walked to the first-level entrance, pulling the door open. Bow waved at the cashier, who nodded back. As they got into the elevator, Adora saw Glimmer stick a key into the elevator side panel, causing the buttons to light up. She hit one of the higher floors and the elevator began to rise.

“Who are we going to meet?” Adora asked.

“Two of the higher ups in the label,” Bow joked. “Get it? Because they’re also higher up in the building.”

Glimmer flicked Bow for the pun but smiled anyway. “Besides that awful pun, he’s correct.”

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open, revealing an organized waiting room, quite different from what Adora had seen the other night. Framed photos adorned the walls instead of sketches, the carpet was immaculately clean, and there appeared to be only a few offices past the lobby. On closer inspection, the posters on the walls seemed to play a similar role to the commemorative sketches floors below; some were old concert announcements of artists that performed decades ago, popular album covers, a few gold and platinum records. The one that caught Adora’s eye was a photograph— three people, two women and one man, arms wrapped around each other while smiling brilliantly at the camera. The small storefront behind them was labeled “Bright Moon Line” in large, styled letters. _That must be very old_ , Adora thought, _seeing as this location seems lived-in and doesn’t have any such outside adornments._

“Adora, it’s time!” Glimmer said, breaking Adora out of her thoughts. “I know, there’s lots to look at up here, but my mom is waiting!”

“Your mom?” Adora replied before Glimmer grabbed her forearm and started leading her towards one of the offices. 

Glimmer knocked on the office door. A muffled “Come in.” rang out and she opened the door, pulling Adora into the room after her.

Adora found herself looking down on a beautiful older woman, possibly in her fifties, with long, pale pink hair and a pair of light wings.

She stood to greet the trio. “Hello Glimmer, Bow. Is this the new singer you wanted to introduce?”

Glimmer nodded. “Mom, this is Adora. She’s a great singer and lyricist.”

“I also play guitar, drums, and can edit tracks,” Adora added.

The woman raised an eyebrow. “Since my daughter did not introduce me, my name is Angella.”

Glimmer coughed, seemingly irritated by her mother’s statement.

“Adora, why do you have all of those skills? It seems unnecessary if you were to only be a singer.” Angella said.

“The Horde makes each recruit be proficient in all skills so that we can all be solo artists without having to attribute credit to instrumentalists and such. Also, if we didn’t garner enough success as soloists, we could also play in the background for other Horde artists’ concerts.”

“Ah, yes, you were trained by Horde Records. Why the change of heart?” Angella asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Freedom. Choices. I’m not entirely sure,” Adora admitted. “But I think I’ll be happier here, among people who are kind and accepting and lenient.”

“Hmm,” Angella said. “Well, every approval for a new label member goes through me. I’d like to hear you sing, ex-Horde recruit.”

Suddenly the door burst open. “Sorry, sorry!” A woman exclaimed, long black hair swinging. “I got caught up in paperwork and then I saw the time.”

“Castaspella,” Angella sighed. “Come in, if you must.”

Castaspella cleared her throat, but stepped into the office anyway. “Are you Adora? Glimmer’s told me about you!” She said, enveloping Adora in a hug. “I just love to see Glimmer branching out and making new friends.”

“Aunt Casta,” Glimmer groaned. “I have friends!”

“I know, dear. All in good fun.” She moved to stand by Angella behind the desk, placing her hand on the other woman’s shoulder. “Well, Adora, I must say I am quite excited to have you here. Music has been Glimmer’s dream since she was a kid, and I’m glad to support her with it.”

Angella smiled lightly. “That’s true. My daughter has always been musically inclined. Why, Castaspella, do you remember that time Glimmer was five and she broke into one of the studio recording rooms?” She turned to look at Castaspella conspiratorially.

“Why, yes,” Castaspella replied slyly. “She made such a mess of all the tracks recorded that week. There was plenty of interesting five-year-old dialogue over the vocals.”

Glimmer groaned. “Please, can you two stop teasing me for once?”

Castaspella winked. “Sure. We’ll just tell Micah you need a double dose of his dad jokes today.”

Bow held back a laugh and Glimmer spun to glare at him. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she asked, “can we _please_ go back to business now?”

Angella’s face instantly lost all mirth. “Alright. Adora, I believe you were about to sing for us?”

Adora looked at Bow and Glimmer. “Is it okay if I sing that song we’ve been working on?”

Bow grinned and patted her shoulder. This time, Adora didn’t flinch. “Of course. You’ve got this.”

From this morning’s events, she felt like starting in the middle of the song. “Here we are again / I feel the chemicals kickin’ in / It’s gettin’ heavier / I wanna run and hide / I wanna run and hide,” she started. She began belting the following lines, feeling the music start to unravel the knot of emotions in her chest. “I do it every time / You’re killin’ me now / And I won’t be denied by you / The animal inside of you.” As she continued, Adora lost herself in the pure experience of singing. At one point, she thought she felt a lone tear slipping down her cheek, but she didn’t have the time to deal with it. She finished the song, singing the last lyric: “Say goodbye to my heart tonight.”

Angella and Castaspella were staring at her with wide eyes. Castaspella’s mouth was wide open and Adora got the sense that one displayed far more emotion than the other.

“Glimmer,” Angella started. “You didn’t tell me she was a belter.”

“Surprise!” Glimmer said, mimicking jazz hands.

Angella turned back to Adora. “That was an impressive performance. With everything combined together I imagine that will be quite the hit.”

“I cannot WAIT to work with you Adora!” Castaspella blurted, excitedly clasping her hands together. “Your voice is so strong and you have a… presence about you when you open your mouth.”

“I agree.” Angella nodded. “Belters are rare as well. What’s your range?”

“Oh, just three octaves so far. I’m working on it, I promise.”

Angella raised an eyebrow. “That’s already quite impressive. I’d be happy to have you join us here, Adora. Bow and Glimmer can show you around, and I believe they have a celebration already planned for the afternoon?”

“Yes ma’am, we’re just waiting on the cake,” Bow said. “You’re both invited, of course.”

“Alright, thanks mom, Aunt Casta. We’re going to take Adora on a tour of the other floors now,” Glimmer said, waving Bow and Adora out the door.

Angella raised a hand in farewell. She waited until she was sure the trio had entered the elevator before turning to Castaspella. “I expect you to watch her closely for the first couple of weeks. We don’t want another Light Spinner incident.”

“Already planning on it. Actually, I was surprised you allowed her in so easily. Not to say I expected a mother-daughter argument but…” Castaspella trailed off, smirking at her sister-in-law.

“I want to trust Glimmer. She’s strong, but she doesn’t always make the wisest decisions which is why I wanted to check who she was bringing in. That’s all.” Angella smirked right back at Castaspella. “You should probably start working on how to market a trio with no recorded songs.”

Castaspella laughed, starting towards the door. “In that case, you should work on arranging our already-full time schedule to accommodate them.”

“Touché,” Angella shook her head at Castaspella’s retreating back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was interesting to write. I decided to change the Angella/Castaspella dynamic from the show because Micah isn’t dead in this AU and that’s where much of their tension came from. They are still a little competitive with each other but they’re also good friends.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are two songs referenced in this chapter. The first is "Girls Like Girls" by Hayley Kiyoko which I gave to Mara. The second, the one Catra is writing, is called "Everything You Want Me To Be" by Cold Front. Again, I do have all these also listed on my Spotify, cookiems85018.

Catra had spent the duration of morning vocal warmups in the bathroom-- no, she  _ hadn't _ been crying; her voice was just scratchier than usual that day. At least, that'd been what she told Lonnie when asked about it. Her focus was even worse than it normally was and she received two smacks on the wrist in an hour-- a personal record, only nobody was there to joke about it with her. By midday, she got a summons from Shadow Weaver. Catra prayed it was about her classes and not the betrayal by the Horde's top recruit.

When she reached her manager's office, she took a deep breath. No one was there to stick up for her anymore, so she should tread lightly. Catra's hand trembled slightly before she opened the door. 

Shadow Weaver sat at her desk, papers neatly sorted around her. "Catra. I assume you are aware of what transpired this morning?"

_ Shit. Of course it's about Adora. _ "I saw Adora leaving the building, yes."

"You two are close. What happened to her? Where is she now?"

Catra's nose scrunched in irritation over her manager's assumed connections between her and that traitor. "We  _ were _ close. Not anymore. She left, and no I  _ don't _ know why or for where."

"Hmm." Shadow Weaver clasped her hands together. "You are not telling me the truth, but it is of little importance. I have a plan to bring her back."

"And what if she doesn't come back?"

"The Horde needs Adora. She must come back."

Catra walked closer to the desk. "We don't need her. Horde Records is plenty successful and we have many recruits nearing their debuts."

"Listen to my plan. Surprisingly, it hinges on you."

That  _ was  _ a surprise. Catra knew her manager despised her. "Fine. What is it?"

"You will open for Scorpia's upcoming concert in Adora's place."

_ That's how it is, huh? Us recruits are so replaceable and interchangeable to you. _ It was a lonely thought made lonelier by the realization that none of the recruits cared much for her anyway.  _ Fine. I can be alone. I've been by myself ever since my mother abandoned me to the foster care system. Why did I think the cutthroat music industry would be any different? _ Catra zoned back in to hear the end of Shadow Weaver's sentence.

"... my reasoning. She should be here shortly."

Catra's ears flicked at the sound of the door swinging open behind her, registering a female voice gasp. 

"Kitty!"

Suddenly, strong arms, no, pincers?, enveloped Catra, lifting her off the floor. Catra yelped, straining her arms in an effort to break the woman's crushing hold. Finally, her feet touched solid ground and she spun in an attack stance to face her surprise attacker.

"Hey there, recruit! My name is Scorpia." The tall and surprisingly buff woman beamed. She appeared to have mandibles and a lengthy stinger behind her— very punk, Catra had to admit.

Sensing no more impending hugs, Catra relaxed her stance, folding her arms. “Hello. Is this a meet-and-greet or something?” She asked, turning to Shadow Weaver.

“You two will be working together in the next month. You will get acquainted. Catra, make sure the song you perform fits Scorpia’s specifications.”

Catra turned back to Scorpia. “And what would those ‘specifications’ be?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Scorpia replied. “Let’s have a brainstorming session for it! Ooh, and my room here has extra seating.”

“Pass. Just let me know when you think of something.” Catra walked towards the door, pausing just before. “It won’t work, you know,” she said to Shadow Weaver.

Shadow Weaver showed no sign of acknowledgment. Catra’s fist clenched as she left.

  
  
  
  


After a lengthy, far too detailed tour of Bright Moon Line’s facilities, Bow and Glimmer brought Adora to the one area they hadn’t toured yet-- a large open room they used for gatherings and parties. The trio stood in the elevator as it began to move towards the final unseen floor. It dinged and the doors began to slide open, revealing a good-sized gathering of people and a massive amount of flowers. A vase and flower arrangement seemed to be on every available surface, practically lining the walls.

“Welcome, Adora!” Sea Hawk yelled, and everyone in the room joined him in clapping and cheering.

Adora stepped out of the elevator, followed by Bow and Glimmer, and glanced around in amazement. “Is this really all for me?” She asked no one in particular.

A blonde in a long pink dress hurried over to her. The blonde clasped Adora’s hands tightly between hers. “Of course! You’re Adora, right? I’m Perfuma. We’re all so happy to have you here!”

Adora smiled at Perfuma’s kind words. Her eager face displayed no hints of dishonesty, so Adora decided to believe her. “I’m glad to be here. Are you the artist of those sketches in the main lobby?”

“Yup! Well, mostly. Sometimes others add in a stick figure or two.” She giggled. “I also do all the album covers for everyone at Bright Moon. Soon I’ll be doing one for you three!”   
“That… sounds really nice.”

“Here,” Perfuma grabbed one of Adora’s hands gently. “I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

Adora felt Perfuma steering her towards the crowd and followed along. She glanced at the colorful bouquets, contrasted with the pastel-tinted walls. There was so much  _ life _ in this building: flowers, sketches, bean bag meeting rooms, parties… Adora had difficulty reconciling it with her memories of the Horde. She had expected a different set of people, sure, but the labels had more dissimilitude than she ever thought possible. Bright Moon felt much like a warm embrace; Horde Records did not. Adora shook herself out of her thoughts as she felt Perfuma come to a stop.

“Adora, this is Mermista. Mermista--” Perfuma started.

“We’ve already met, actually. Glad to have you here officially,” Mermista said. “Are you showing her around, flower girl?”

Perfuma smiled. “Yup! It’s kinder to introduce her to everyone rather than make her go at it alone.”

Mermista cocked her head, tapping a finger on her chin. “Hmm. You’re right, I guess.”

Sea Hawk appeared behind Mermista, placing his hands on her shoulders. “It’s you again, Adora! Is this party banging enough for you?”

Adora made a show of looking around the room. “There might be more flowers than people here,” she joked.

“Oh, do you like them? I love flowers!” Perfuma gushed. “I actually arranged all of these.”

“Her parents own a flower shop in a quaint little town,” Mermista said.

Sea Hawk shifted so he was beside Mermista, arm slung loosely around her. “Perfuma is the only one here with artistic talents. When I was created, there must not have been enough room for that with all of my awesomeness and musical talent taking up space.”

Mermista groaned. “Adora probably wants to go meet other people, not you. Let’s get some food.”

“Whatever you like, dearest.”

Mermista averted her eyes as a light blush spread across her dark cheeks. She turned towards the little appetizer table and Sea Hawk followed.

“They’re so sweet, aren’t they?” Perfuma said. “They’ve known each other for a good time, but they’re dating now.” Her face softened and her eyes unfocused slightly, dreamlike. “One day…” she sighed. “Sorry, just manifesting.”

Adora gave her hand a slight squeeze. “That’s okay. Who’s next? There are so many people here.”

“Oh! You should definitely meet Micah. He’s like everyone’s dad here, but he’s also our finance and tax expert.” Perfuma began guiding Adora through the crowd once again, stopping just behind a man and tall winged woman who Adora remembered was Angella. Perfuma cleared her throat behind the pair, who both turned around in response.

“Adora. Welcome to Bright Moon Line.” Angella said. She was holding hands with the shorter man next to her.

“Hello, Adora! I’m Micah, Glimmer’s dad. Glad to have you on the team.” He smiled kindly.

Micah seemed benevolent and Angella was just as she had been a few hours ago, but Adora knew they were authorities at Bright Moon. Afraid she was invading their space by standing so close, Adora took a step back. At least, that’s what she tried to do, but her foot immediately connected with a vase behind her. Flowers and water spilled out onto the floor. She gasped, kneeling immediately to try and fix the mess, noticing a crack in the porcelain vase. “I am so sorry! I really didn’t know it was so close by. I’ll pay for a replacement.” Adora tried not to let it show, but she was panicking over what repercussions would exist at Bright Moon for a low-level musician like herself.

Micah knelt beside her, taking the vase from her hand. “That’s alright. I don’t think you particularly had it out for this little vase.” He turned it and saw the crack. “Ah, I see. This is actually a pretty fun occurrence.”

Adora looked at him, confused. “Why is it fun? It’s broken; the crack can’t be repaired without looking obvious.”

“That’s just it. In Mystacor, my hometown, there’s a tradition we call ‘kintsugi.’ Cracks in items are repaired with gold lacquer, which makes the item uniquely beautiful. It’s the littlest things that have the power to tell a story.” He winked at Adora. “This vase is a commemoration of the day you joined Bright Moon. Or, it will be, once I fix it.”

Perfuma stood next to Angella, holding the flowers she had gathered from the floor. “Come here Adora,” she said, gesturing with the flowers.

Micah stood, helping Adora up. She moved slightly closer to Perfuma.

Perfuma held up a couple of flowers next to Adora’s face before snapping the stem of one. She gently tucked the flower behind Adora’s ear, smiling. “It’s okay, Adora. Everyone makes mistakes. Besides, I have plenty of vases,” she said, gesturing around the room at the dozens of flower arrangements to prove her point.

Adora giggled a little and felt the anxious tension dissolve from her chest. “Thank you,” she said, looking at Perfuma and Micah.

“Of course, kiddo,” Micah replied. “Perfuma, why don’t you take our clumsy friend to meet some of our other members? I know some are only planning to stay for a short time.”

Perfuma nodded and looked around the room once more. Seemingly decided on a direction, she grabbed Adora’s hand and took her over to another corner of the room. This time they stopped beside two women, one with deep warm skin and long flowing brown hair, the other thin, tall, and largely expressionless.

“Mara! Light Hope! I’m so glad you two could make it.” Perfuma said with a smile. “This is Adora, our newest member.”

Adora gasped. “Mara? As in the artist who wrote “Girls Like Girls”? That was my favorite song when I was younger!”

The shorter woman laughed heartily. “Yes, that’s me. I’m so glad to hear you loved that song. My songs nowadays are much softer though,” she said, turning to look fondly at the woman beside her. “My wife is my greatest inspiration. Adora, this is Light Hope.”

The lithe woman nodded. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Suddenly, the lights went out in the room. Adora watched Light Hope angle herself in front of her wife protectively. Part of the lights in the corner flicked on and off a few times, revealing Angella talking rapidly with Micah and Castaspella before the latter began rushing towards the exit area.

Adora heard the elevator ding and turned towards the noise. A shorter woman with long purple hair darted out of the open doors and disappeared into the dark. After a couple of bangs and metallic grating, the lights lit back up. 

“Sorry, sorry!” The purple-haired girl yelled to the crowd. “I was  _ trying _ to reroute just a little bit of power to the amplifier I’ve been developing as a test, but it seems to short out the rest of the building. Actually, the way the wiring works in this building is  _ fascinating _ because it runs—”

Adora watched as Mermista clapped a hand on the girl’s shoulder, shaking her to stop the rambling. The two talked for a second before the shorter one ran back to the elevator.

“Who was that?” Adora wondered.

“Oh, that’s Entrapta. She does a lot of our tech work and fixes things when they break around here.” Perfuma said.

“Entrapta makes things a hundred times better when she fixes them. She once designed a special echoing microphone for me, and I love using it out on tour.” Mara said.

“There’s that, but she also tends to be a little… chaotic.” Perfuma replied. “Just like now. The only time she isn’t like that is when she’s focused on a tech project or a song concept, although she never releases either to the public.”

“She certainly knows how to make an entrance,” Adora said.

“That’s true.” Mara laughed. “Unfortunately, we don’t have much time to stay and chat today. It’s rare that I come in on a weekday at all, and we have some work to attend to back in Elberon.”

“I know it’s a bit of a journey to come here from little Elberon! We love having you,” Perfuma said, stepping to give Mara a hug. “Of course, it’s always nice to have you come along as well,” she said to Light Hope. “Mara always records faster when you’re nearby.”

Light Hope’s clear face softened slightly as she turned to look at her wife. “I always enjoy hearing her sing. She is lovely.”

Mara stepped closer to her wife. “Aw, Hope. I love performing for you too.” She turned to Adora. “I wish you the best here at Bright Moon, Adora. You’re going to do great things, I can tell.”

Adora couldn’t help but smile at her childhood idol’s words.

“Alright, but we do have to be on our way. I’ll probably stop by again sometime this month, whenever I finish the song I have in progress. Come on, Hope, we should say goodbye to Angella before we go.” Mara gave Perfuma and Adora a small wave before walking towards Angella on the other side of the room.

Light Hope nodded a farewell to the pair before following her wife with measured steps.

“It’s really rare to see Mara even when she is here,” Perfuma explained. “She’s always so quick to record and edit her songs.”

Adora watched Mara as she talked animatedly with Angella. “I never knew she was licensed to Bright Moon Line,” she said. “Or that she was married. She and her wife seem very different.”

“Sometimes opposites attract! And don’t you think they both have a special, shared bond of some sort? It’s hard to tell what, but they just seem right for each other.” She smiled softly at Adora. “Have you ever had that? Someone you just felt right with?”

Adora scanned the room for Bow and Glimmer, finding them with Mermista. “Yeah,” she said. “I think I have.”

  
  
  
  


Catra slammed the door to her apartment. The day had been so long and she had barely any time to process what had happened that morning. She’d practically jogged home, desperate to slam the door behind her and shut the world out. A sob hiccuped out of her mouth as she collapsed onto her thin mattress. Catra growled to herself.

_ Whatever. My career is still ahead of me, even if she isn’t there with me. _

She turned over to grab her pillow with a clawed hand, digging her nails in.

“So what?” She screamed. “I don’t need her. I’ve never needed anyone. She was just someone who was always around. I don’t care that she’s gone, that she left.”

The words seemed to reverberate off the walls and echoed in her mind. 

_ She left. _

_ She left. _

_ She left. _

_ She left… _

_ She left  _ **_me_ ** _._

Catra gasped, feeling her throat constrict. Her chest tightened as she swung her legs over the side of her bed. Her hand clutched over her heart which felt like it wasn’t beating right. It was too fast, too painful. Catra started to pant; she hated this feeling, wanted it gone.

_ Gone like Adora? _ Her mind taunted her cruelly.

“I don’t care. I’ll be better on my own.” The words twisted as they left her mouth, taking on an expressive rhythm of their own. 

Catra stood on shaky legs and grabbed her songwriting notebook before remembering she’d recently filled it. Hissing frustratedly, she placed it back on the kitchen counter and rummaged through a drawer for a spare. Drawing one out, she grabbed a pen before sinking to the floor.

Her hand had trouble grasping the pen firmly as she tried to write out what she was thinking. “How could I state my case? / How could I dig you up? / You just left me, the rest seemed to break down too easy.”

Catra felt a tear close to slipping out of her eye and dug a nail into her palm to stay focused. “They cut me, your words / As they pass right through I said ….”

She yelled. “I don't care! I’m so much better on my own! I’ll be better on my own.”

Catra closed the book and slowly clicked the pen closed as well. Pressing her back to the wall, she brought her knees up and hugged her legs, burrowing her face into her body. Her tail curled around her feet as sobs violently wracked her body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, I want to explain that Micah & Castaspella are Asian and that's why I thought of including the tradition of kintsugi! It is a real Japanese tradition and I think it's really beautiful, so I hope I didn't accidentally appropriate it in any way. Also, Mara deserved better so in my fic she isn't dead (obviously). Light Hope isn't a hologram in this, but she still looks very similar; I suppose the binary coding that you see in the show might show up as a scar if she were human?


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Song in this chapter is "Warriors" by Imagine Dragons. Seems like every song with that title makes me cry.

Adora was beginning to settle into her new routine; she still got a bit lost navigating to Bright Moon Line every morning, but at least her apartment was closer to her new label. As she made her way down the sidewalk in the brisk morning air, she grinned at the promotional image for Mermista’s upcoming concert.

_It’s still crazy that I’m friends with such a popular artist. She’s much more open than I imagined for a top singer._

She smiled to herself. Mermista was almost a sure bet to win a Grammy this year.

_I wonder what Bright Moon’s policy for the Grammys is. Maybe they’d let Glimmer, Bow, and I come along as guests?_

Practically shaking with excitement, Adora eagerly sped towards her destination.

  
  
  


She pushed open the door to the first-floor karaoke place, nodding at the usual morning cashier. Pulling out her phone, she texted the group chat that she was there. Glimmer sent her a quick “coming” reply.

The elevator dinged, revealing her pink-haired bandmate. “Morning, Adora,” Glimmer said with half-closed eyes. 

Adora walked towards her sleepy friend-- Glimmer never seemed to wake up until at least nine in the morning. “Good morning to you, too.”

Glimmer shook her head slightly to wake herself up. “I have something for you!” Uncurling her fist, she revealed a shimmering gold key. “It’s for the elevator, so you can come up whenever you want. Also works for the front door, if you’re the first person here. I know it’s been a few days; my mom just got around to it yesterday.”

“Thanks, Glimmer,” Adora said, taking the key from her. “This means a lot.”

“Of course! You’re an official member of Bright Moon Line. Come on, Bow’s waiting for us up in the studio.”

They stepped into the elevator, Glimmer allowing Adora to use her key this time. The elevator quickly brought them up to the general workspace floor.

As they entered, Adora saw Perfuma walking down the hall.

“Lovely morning, Adora, Glimmer! There’s some loose leaf tea in the kitchen area if either of you are interested.”

“Is it caffeinated?” Glimmer asked.

“No, but it has positive natural energy!”

“Thanks, Perfuma,” Adora replied. “I think we’re both going to head for our little workroom though.”

“Okay. Just let me know when you have a finished product for me to design for! I’m sure it will be great,” Perfuma said as she walked away.

The pair entered one of the smaller workrooms. It was crowded-- Bow’s electronic setups occupied half the space and Glimmer’s guitar and pick collection took up the rest, leaving only a small area for a desk, a couch, and a few chairs. Adora navigated to the desk, trying not to bump into anything. Glimmer opted to collapse on the couch.

Bow was already seated with papers covering the desk in front of him. He had a pen pressed to his pursed lips, tapping it occasionally. “Hey guys,” he said without looking up. “I’ve been reviewing the song.”

Adora slid into a chair beside him. “Which parts?”

“This stanza,” Bow said, tapping beside a few lines. 

_The time will come / When you will have to rise / Above the rest and prove yourself / Your spirit never dies. / Farewell, I’ve gone to take my throne above / But don’t weep for me ‘cause this will be the labor of my love._

“I’m not sure I like the idea of you belting these like we were thinking. I think it would be more emotionally impactful if you were to only yell during the second half of the chorus.”

“Kind of like screaming out who we are? ‘ _We are the warriors that built this town_ ,’ huh?”

“From dust,” Glimmer murmured from the couch.

“Yes, I know that’s how the phrase ends.” Adora turned to look at Glimmer, who was still half asleep.

“Also, I think we should consider how we want to start the song,” Bow continued. “We don’t have any progress on the first stanza.”

Adora bit her lip. “I know. It’s a self-sacrificial song, but we’ve already written that in on the verses you were looking at.”

“Any thoughts?” Bow asked, looking expectantly at Adora.

She sighed in return. “Unfortunately, no. Yesterday I was consumed with trying to write at least an opening phrase, but I’ve come up with nothing.”

“That’s alright, Adora.” Bow patted her shoulder as she stared frustratedly at the table.

“It’s not alright. We need to be working faster. The Horde probably has tons of songs ready for release at this very second, and I’m not doing my part to help produce our own.”

Glimmer sat up on the couch behind them. “Adora,” she said authoritatively, swinging her legs over the side, “don’t be ridiculous. You’ve only been with us for a few days and we already have one song ready for recording and another half-written. You’ve been _great_ for our productivity.”

“But it isn’t enough! I need to be working faster. Maybe I’m just not putting in enough hours.”

“Adora!” Bow grabbed her shoulders and shook her. “Please. I don’t know what it was like in the Horde, but here there isn’t a strict time limit or song quota. You’re free to write what you want at your own pace.”

Adora looked helplessly back at him. “But I don’t know what my own pace is. I only know the one Shadow Weaver set for me.”

Glimmer choked over on the couch. “Who’s Shadow Weaver to you?”

“My mana— well, ex-manager.”

“Hmph,” Glimmer mumbled as she threw herself against the cushions.

“Anyways, Shadow Weaver always worked me really hard. She made sure I was always doing extra drills, practicing extra hours, and spending multiple days in the recording studio. It was to help me get ahead.”

“That’s really toxic behavior,” Bow said. “You can push yourself as hard as you want but no one should force you to do that. Besides, knowing you, you were probably already going the extra mile.”

“And knowing _Shadow Weaver,_ she probably gained a lot off of your efforts.” Glimmer said irritably.

“I don’t know… I did always have the most work produced out of any of the cadets, and I was on track to be their top new artist,” Adora said, a little defensively.

“Is that what you wanted though?” Glimmer asked. “Sometimes people can make you think it’s in your best interest when it’s really only in theirs.”

Adora placed her head in her hands, staring blankly at the wooden tabletop that her elbows rested on. _Maybe they’re right. Shadow Weaver always seemed overly invested in how my work affected the Horde, not what I wanted. But maybe that’s how the music industry works? How can I be sure of what they want from me?_

Bow stepped closer, gently rubbing circles on her back. “Hey, it’s okay if you don’t have anything right now. Creative processes take time, we all know that. Why don’t we work on something else and come back to this song later?”

Sniffing a bit, which surprised her, Adora lifted her head to look at Bow. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

“To take care of your mental health? Of course! You are just as important as the music we make.” He reached his arms around her, hugging her tightly. “Besides, we have plenty of other stuff to do.”

“We do?” Glimmer groaned. “Our job is just to create music.”

“We’re missing something in that equation,” Bow said, grinning widely.

“You look far too excited for whatever’s coming, Bow,” Glimmer said apprehensively.

“There’s one important thing we need: A BAND NAME!” Bow threw his hands up in excitement.

Adora giggled a little at his extravagance.

Glimmer stood up, albeit reluctantly. “Alright, well you have a point,” she admitted. “What did you have in mind?”

“How about… the Best Friends Squad!”

“What kind of a band name is that? No way! How about the Glimmer Group?”

“Hey, I’m the vocalist here!” Adora butted in. “Actually I made a list for us.” She rummaged around her bag, pulling out a couple sheets of paper. “I’ve got _Greyskull, Hopeful Light,_ or possibly flipping that _Lightly Hopeful, Crystallia, Ere Light_ … any of those sound interesting?”

“I do like the way _Ere Light_ sounds…” Glimmer mused.

“I’m still in favor of the Best Friends Squad,” Bow said.

“Bowwww that’s a ridiculous name! We are _not_ calling ourselves that as a pop group.”

“Oh, come on Glimmer! It’s a happy name that describes us.”

“No way! Cross it off the list.”

“What list? Adora’s the only one with an actual list.”

“Come on, you know what I meant,” Glimmer said, lightly shoving at Bow’s shoulder.

Adora smiled while watching the interaction. “I’m so happy we can interact like this.”

Glimmer raised an eyebrow, motioning for Adora to explain her statement.

“The Horde regulations over stage and artist names were strict and we never really organized into bands,” she continued. “I’m so glad I decided to follow my heart when it led me here.”

“Aw, Adora!” Bow said, tears shimmering in his eyes. “We’re so happy to be here with you. Actually, you might have stumbled onto something there. What about naming ourselves _Heart_?”

“Maybe not in our language,” Adora said. “Actually, it would sound cool in Catalan: _Cor_.”

“You speak Catalan?” Glimmer asked.

“A little,” Adora replied. “My family is Hispanic and I speak Spanish fluently, but I used to be really interested in the Catalan region.”

“I wish I was bilingual,” Bow said. “My dads wanted me to learn Latin when I was in a young boy’s choir. It didn’t happen.”

“Of course they would want you to learn a dead language,” Glimmer said.

“I know! I’d rather know a language that I can use to speak with people.”

“Obviously!”

“Anyway,” Bow said, “I think we can keep _Cor_ as one of our current ideas, although we should be careful about just using another language that we won’t really sing. Any other thoughts?”

“If we’re going along the route of names close to our hearts, what about calling ourselves _Mystacor_? That’s my hometown, where I grew up before we moved to the big city permanently years ago.”

“I’ve never been there,” Adora admitted. “Also, if people are talking about us, wouldn’t that be a little too confusing?”

“That’s a good point,” Bow said. “Is there something else we could use to symbolize Mystacor as a city?”

Tapping her chin, Glimmer stared down at the table for a few seconds. “Oh! I’ve got it! Mystacor is one of the cities left over from previous civilizations, right? Well, the people who lived there used to call it ‘Arxia’ and I don’t think most people really know that.”

“So, we could call ourselves _Arxia_? I like it,” Adora said.

“It sounds like a good electro-pop name,” Bow nodded. 

“So we’re all in agreement here? We should let my mom and Aunt Casta know.”

Bow and Adora grinned in agreement. He stuck out his hand, palm down, in the group cheering gesture. Adora and Glimmer placed their right hands on top of Bow’s. 

“To Arxia, on three okay?” Bow said.

The other two shook their heads in affirmation.

“One, Two, Three— TO ARXIA!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, one, when did "Warriors" get added to League of Legends?? Anyway, Imagine Dragons :)  
> Is this chapter not everything I wanted it to be? Yes. It's also late; I've been having some issues but I am trying my best to keep writing. I am super excited to finish this (although that will not be soon!)
> 
> For fun, here are other names (ft. explanations) that were considered for the best friend squad band:  
> \- Arxia: A turning point in s5 of the show! (Arxia is the name of the citadel hidden in Mystacor). Catra & Adora's relationship changes a lot from the events in that place. Plus, I really liked the idea of harkening back to an older civilization that no longer exists, ie the First Ones/ Eternians.  
> \- Cor: "Heart" in Catalan is actually "cor" and I almost went with it since it was just so similar to the Heart of Etheria concept. (Heart & core of the planet? Come onnn). Catalan is a wealthy area in Spain; I totally think Adora's family could have heritage there since she was a princess in the original version of the show...  
> \- Velvet Moons: A wordplay off of Prime's weird diamond-shaped ships' names (Velvet Glove) and the aspects of space & Etheria's multiple moons.  
> \- Greyskull, Gray Skulls: Obviously from Adora's catchphrase.  
> \- The Hopeful Light(s), Lightly Hopeful: Sounded very much like a pop-punk band style name, play off of Light Hope, but I found them a little lackluster.  
> \- Mystacor: Before I decided to make it a town name.  
> \- Etherian Royals, Etherial Royals, Etherially Royals: You know, the princesses of power, of Etheria,,,,  
> \- Crystallia, Crystalline: The Heart of Etheria looks like a crystal I'm sorry  
> \- Ere Light: A town in the show is named Erelandia and I really like the word "ere"!


End file.
